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50/50 Shot

First: An unfortunate, albeit small, update in regards to the nestlings in the garage roof. I am sorry to report that the remaining nestlings did not survive the “heat wave” that we have been experiencing of late and, by the time my husband or I found them, they were already deceased. It is not all that surprising, in the wild their chances of survival are only slightly better than in captivity. I do feel sorry for the parent-birds however, there were at least two or three days where, in the evening, we could hear them screaming a storm up trying to find their babies.

I can only hope that the two picked up by the RSPCA have faired better than their siblings.

I’ve been poking around, looking for some sort of indication on what kind of queue-time we can expect in regards to the FLR(M) VISA application. My learnings are not very encouraging, since the smallest breakdown I could find showed that most cases were resolved in 6 months or less and they didn’t break it down any smaller than that – likely because of people such as myself who throw hissy-fits at being told, for no other reason that because of the sheer workload despite having paid extra to have “priority status,” we still have to wait. About the only time savings I can see in this instance is that, by going to the Public Enquiry Office, we have basically cut out the first month of waiting for them to just tell us to register my biometrics.

Because that’s how the standard priority works. First you send in your application/paperwork, then they take the money from your account, then you wait about a month and then they send you a letter saying that you can register your biometrics, and then you send that back to them, and then you wait some more.

A part of me, in some warped sense of humour where it actually isn’t funny, thinks that this is really a test to see how patient you are. As though to say: If you can’t put up with our inefficiencies, you clearly do not deserve to remain in the UK.

Anyone planning to travel for anything during the waiting period can also scratch that idea right off the list now: asking for your passport back before they are done processing usually counts as a withdrawal of the application; meaning they keep your money AND you won’t get the VISA. Bonus?

Some people, pleading compassion to their Ministers of Parliament, usually have a letter written to the UKBA from the MP in question on their behalf to kindly put a step on it… though this doesn’t normally help much and, likely, just ticks them off further.

Long story short: expect to wait anywhere between 3 to 6 months no matter what you do. Don’t make any plans, you’re not going to be doing anything for awhile.